Kansas City education leaders urge COVID vaccinations
Here came Kansas City Public Schools Superintendent Mark Bedell making ready to save lives.
Sweater off. Tie undone. Dress shirt unbuttoned and his left shoulder exposed for the needle that was coming with his first Moderna Covid-19 vaccination shot.
“I’m doing my part to keep everyone safe.”
“Here we go, everybody,” he said as the elastic-gloved Missouri National Guardswoman gave him the stick. “Shot No. 1.”
Let it be known, he said, that he was here at Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church in the heart of his Kansas City Public Schools district, just as Missouri was adding educators to the vaccination priority list in mid-March.
Because, he said, “We’ve lost too many lives already.”
Bedell and other education leaders came to Morning Star’s Youth and Family Life Center at 27th Street and Prospect Avenue to get vaccinated and encourage others to do the same as soon as their opportunity comes — especially in their districts’ communities of color that have been hit particularly hard.
“I understand the fear around this,” Bedell said. “But . . . when you look at the disproportionality of how vicious this virus has been on our community — here we have an opportunity to do something about it.”
“We want everybody to get the vaccine,” he said, “and get this virus under control.”
March 15 Missouri moved to Tier 3 in its vaccination priority phase. Tier 3 includes educators in K-12 schools and child care workers. Earlier tiers included everyone 65 or older, people at extra risk because of health conditions and workers in health fields and emergency services.
With educators joining the priority list, Center School District Superintendent Yolanda Cargile made her first trip to Morning Star with feelings of relief and with urgency.
“We want students back in school,” she said. “We want all staff to be in the buildings healthy and safe.”
“When you look at . . . how vicious this virus has been on our community — here we have an opportunity to do something about it.”
Like Bedell, she wanted her vaccination made known — that “I am doing my part to keep everyone safe . . . as I interact with staff and students and parents and other community members,” Cargile said.
Center began returning students to buildings in February, starting with elementary grades. Kansas City Public Schools began bringing elementary students back March 15. Many school systems began bringing students back earlier, some last fall.
Everyone made the best choices they could, based on the numbers of cases in their communities and the advice from health officials, but the choices were hard, Cargile said.
The chance at getting vaccines across the district and its community will bring relief.
“Receiving the Covid-19 vaccine increases my sense of security to make recommendations to the board and discuss re-entry efforts with community members,” she said, “knowing that all staff have been provided the opportunity to receive the vaccine.”
The site where the superintendents got their vaccine was also important, they said.
As of March 10, LINC had teamed with Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church, the Missouri National Guard and Truman Medical Centers to bring more than 5,300 vaccines to eligible residents in a community that is among the most vulnerable to the virus.
“To have a site through our partnership with LINC right here in the heart of the community allows for us now to easily get here so we can receive our vaccine,” Bedell said. “This is going to be important in us being able to get our economy up and running.”
Lead by your actions, said Major Stevie Brooks, KCPS’s dropout prevention coordinator and Army JROTC commander.
“They always told me in the military that you need to set the example,” he said.
So he too, like Bedell and Cargile, bared his shoulder and took his shot.
“I’ve seen over the last months how drastically it has affected our nation,” he said. “Please come out and take this shot. Protect you and your family and your loved ones.”
By Joe Robertson/LINC Writer
Video edited by Bryan Shepard
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Sign up for vaccine opportunities
“They always told me in the military that you need to set the example.”
There are many ways to sign up to be contacted to receive a vaccine. You can sign up on more than one site:
Missouri has a statewide signup at the webpage: Missouri Vaccine Navigator.
The Kansas City Health Department signup page has a Vaccine Signup Form. You can also call 3-1-1 to sign up.
Click to sign up for: Jackson County.
Click to sign up for: Clay County.
Click for signups for Johnson County and Wyandotte County in Kansas.
Search local pharmacies supplies with the National Vaccine Finder.
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